⚡️ Project Hail Mary by Andy Weir — 4.5/5

Umm… amaze, amaze, amaze. I was honestly a little skeptical when I first started—mostly because of the writing style—but I got swept into the story so quickly. I haven’t read much sci-fi since the early 2010s, but this book absolutely encouraged me to take a closer look at the genre again.

There’s really very little I would change about this book. At its core, it’s a story about science, persistence, friendship, and hope. I loved the back-and-forth between timelines, and I loved how nerdy, blunt, and straightforward so many of the scientists are. The explanations of biology (especially microbiology and evolution) and physics were genuinely fun to read, not overwhelming.

And of course, the friendship between Rocky and Ryland Grace is the heart and highlight of the book. When I reached about the 20% mark and the general premise was revealed, I remember wondering what else there could possibly be—but there is always more than you expect. That’s because you can never quite predict where this story will take you.

There’s also thoughtful commentary throughout on academia, failure, bravery versus cowardice, climate change, and the ethics of removing individual agency to save a larger population.

All in all, I’ll be thinking about this engineer–scientist duo for a long time, and I really hope the movie coming out this year does the book justice.